So much to sassafras

Sunday

Sep 9, 2012 at 12:01 AM

Talk about a tree that has it all.

Talk about a tree that has it all.

During my nature walks, I can stand beneath one and talk for 30 minutes. At a glimpse, this deciduous tree has unique, deeply furrowed bark; contorted branches; vivid green twigs; colorful fruits; and comical shaped leaves, which turn brilliant yellow, orange and red in autumn. You'll get a smell of its spicy personality — an individuality which may reawaken childhood memories or remind you of a common breakfast cereal.

I welcome you to the distinctive sassafras, a tree of distinguishing characteristics.

Sassafras (Sassafras albidum) is a widespread tree found in the eastern United States. In the Poconos, it is abundant in most upland settings where it grows in harmony with oaks and hickory, but is uncommon in northern hardwood and coniferous forests.

Sassafras is a medium-sized tree that can exceed 60 feet in height. The bark is reddish-brown with deep, zig-zag furrows, especially on mature trees. The branches curve upward, giving it a contorted appearance.

The young twigs are bright green and can be easily detected, particularly in winter. Sassafras leaves have a variety of shapes. The smooth, margined leaves may exhibit one lobe, two lobes or completely without lobes.

The flowers of sassafras are yellow-green in color and form ball-like clusters that open before the leaves. The unique fruits are a dangling, loose cluster of blue berries supported by bright-red cups.

What's even more interesting about sassafras: the mitten resemblance of its leaves, its spicy fragrance and the history of its consumptive uses.

Sassafras is one of few trees that can exhibit different-shaped leaves on the same branch. All I need to do is display a leafed branch to my audience and the "Sassafras Show" begins.

The "mittens" vary, with one thumb, two thumbs or no thumbs. The greenish twigs and leaves have a pleasant, spicy smell which remind one — especially children — of a breakfast cereal called Froot Loops. One whiff of a broken branch or stem is all it takes to incite an "Oh, yeah!" I proceed to chew a fresh leaf and describe the taste as a slippery Froot Loop, which raises a few eyebrows.

The young, fresh branches of sassafras can be frayed at one end and used as a fragrant toothbrush. The dried leaves are quite mucilaginous and are used as a gumbo or soup thickener in Southern cuisine — hence the "slippery Froot Loop" texture.

The spicy smell of the twigs and branches were used in fragrant soaps and perfumes. The roots and bark of sassafras were used to flavor rootbeer or brewed into sassafras tea. However, in 1960, the FDA banned the use of sassafras oil and the chemical called sasfrole in commercially mass-produced foods and drugs. Studies have shown it to have carcinogenic properties in laboratory animals.

With the FDA warnings of its consumptive uses, its best to avoid concoctions made from sassafras roots. However, I have sparingly sampled sassafras tea as well as concocted a remarkable-tasting sassafras syrup made from a mixture of sassafras tea and sugar syrup. The result tastes like rootbeer honey.

Sassafras, the unique tree which was once used to flavor America centuries ago, can still fascinate us today. Take a whiff of a broken branch and smell its spicy fragrance, reminiscent of Froot Loops. Scratch a fresh root and smell old-fashioned rootbeer. Count the fingers on several leaves of the "mitten tree" and I am sure you'll give it a thumbs-up for its entertainment value.

Contact Rick Koval at pocononaturalist@yahoo.com or write to him at PO Box 454, Dallas, PA 18612.

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